THE SINO-SWISS ECONOMIC FORUM 2020 The SSEF 2020 takes place every two years in Beijing and is by far the largest economic summit between Switzerland and China. It features successful leaders and important players from the Swiss and Chinese government and business community. The Forum offers a top-level panel discussion, keynote speeches, a cocktail reception and an exclusive gala dinner. On the occasion of this year’s 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Switzerland and the Embassy’s focus on “Switzerland: Smart and Sustainable”, this year’s SSEF aims to bring together the most influential voices of the Sino-Swiss business community to focus on the topic of “Together for a better future – smart & sustainable 共创更美未来——智慧与可持续发展” and to foster a dialogue on sustainability. In preparation of the SSEF 2020, SwissCham and the Embassy of Switzerland in Beijing joined forces to impulse working groups aimed to create business synergies and shared value on sustainability. Based on member’s inputs, five successful groups have been organized and gathered online to address shared concerns, mainly focusing on sustainable industrial processes, how to build knowledge and raise awareness on sustainability, sustainable healthcare and nutrition, data-driven sustainability and energy & resource management. In order to deepen our knowledge on sustainability, a series of four seminars was held in October, which allowed representatives of Swiss companies and Chinese ministries to directly exchange points of view on customer-oriented sustainability, circular business models, how to unlock the full potential of data-centric activities to create value, as well as the future of online & offline gatherings. As China aims towards a strong sustainable future (e.g. 2060 carbon neutrality), the topic of sustainability and the wider greening of China’s economy cannot be ignored in 2020. The live panel session during the SSEF on November 20 seeks to gather highest level of economic and political leaders and connects Sino-Swiss local authorities, the private sector and civil society for bilateral exchanges between the two countries. The panel will outline robust and prosperous economic and political Sino-Swiss relations as well as lucrative bilateral trade and strong business ties. The panel discussion, moderated by the well-known anchor women Tian Wei (CGTN), will also showcase investors, entrepreneurs and companies’ engagement and expertise for sustainability issues by targeting key questions.